John William Sweeterman (1907–1998) was an American newspaperman who was publisher of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' from 1961 to 1968, and who helped engineer the ''Post''s 1954 acquisition of the ''

Washington Times-Herald The ''Washington Times-Herald'' (1939–1954) was an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memor ...

'', which improved the ''Post''s struggling financial situation. Born in

Celina, Ohio Celina ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Mercer County, Ohio, United States about 58 miles northwest of Dayton. The population was 10,400 at the 2010 census. Celina is situated on the northwestern shores of Grand Lake St. Marys. History ...

, he attended the

University of Dayton The University of Dayton (UD) is a private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio. Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary, it is one of three Marianist universities in the nation and the second-largest private university in Ohio. The univ ...

and started at the '' Dayton Journal-Herald'' as an office boy, eventually becoming the vice president and general manager. He moved to Washington, D.C., in 1950 to work for the ''Post'' where he became business manager and then general manager under owner and publisher

Phil Graham Philip Leslie Graham (July 18, 1915 – August 3, 1963) was an American newspaperman. He served as publisher and later co-owner of ''The Washington Post'' and its parent company, The Washington Post Company. During his years with the Post Comp ...

. Sweeterman became publisher in 1961 until his retirement in 1968, when he persuaded then owner

Katharine Graham Katharine Meyer Graham (June 16, 1917 – July 17, 2001) was an American newspaper publisher. She led her family's newspaper, ''The Washington Post'', from 1963 to 1991. Graham presided over the paper as it reported on the Watergate scandal, whi ...

to take over the role of publisher. He served as vice chairman of the

Washington Post Company Graham Holdings Company (formerly The Washington Post Company) is a diversified American conglomerate holding company. Headquartered in Arlington County, Virginia, and incorporated in Delaware, it was formerly the owner of ''The Washington Post ...

from 1968 to 1971. He also was a director of the American Security and Trust Company and president of the Community Welfare Council. He received an honorary degree from Saint Joseph's College, Indiana, in 1969.

References

1907 births 1998 deaths The Washington Post publishers People from Celina, Ohio {{US-publish-bio-stub